# Comparison

How siftp 0.4.0 compares with three other file transfer servers:
SFTPGo, FileZilla Server, and vsftpd. The siftp column is from this
site's docs. Each other cell is taken from that project's own pages,
listed under [Sources](#sources). Where those pages do not say, the
cell reads "not documented". That means we did not find it, not that
the feature is missing. Checked on 2026-10-28; the other projects
change, so check their pages before you decide.

| | siftp | SFTPGo | FileZilla Server | vsftpd |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Protocols | FTP, FTPS explicit and implicit, SFTP, read-only WebDAV | SFTP, SCP, FTP/S, WebDAV, HTTPS ([S2](#sources)); explicit or implicit FTPS not documented there | FTP and FTPS. SFTP only in the paid Pro Enterprise Server ([F1](#sources)); WebDAV not documented | FTP, explicit and implicit FTPS. No SFTP or WebDAV documented ([V2](#sources), [V3](#sources)) |
| Web client for end users | Yes, the [web portal](/docs/portal.html) | Yes, WebClient ([S2](#sources), [S3](#sources)) | Not documented | Not documented |
| Share links | Yes: view, upload and view, upload only; password; expiry | Yes: password, expiry, source IP limit, download and upload count caps ([S3](#sources)) | Not documented | Not documented |
| Admin web UI | Yes, the [console](/docs/console.html) | Yes, WebAdmin ([S2](#sources), [S3](#sources)) | Not documented; a GUI configuration tool is documented ([F2](#sources)) | Not documented |
| Admin REST API | Yes, OpenAPI 3.1 | Yes, with an OpenAPI 3 schema; JWT or API keys ([S4](#sources)) | Not documented | Not documented |
| MCP or LLM integration | Yes: MCP tools, OAuth for MCP clients, `llms.txt` | Not documented | Not documented | Not documented |
| S3 or object storage | Yes: S3 and S3-compatible | Yes: S3-compatible, Google Cloud Storage, Azure Blob ([S1](#sources), [S2](#sources)) | Not documented | Not documented |
| Tiering to object storage | Yes, optional: local disk is a cache over S3 | "Smart Archiving" in the commercial Enterprise edition ([S1](#sources)); not documented for Community | Not documented | Not documented |
| Audit log | Hash-chained, verifiable with `siftpd audit-verify` | JSON logs of transfers, commands, and logins; no audit log or tamper evidence documented ([S5](#sources)) | Configurable logging; no audit log documented ([F1](#sources)) | Not documented |
| Admin sign-in with passkeys | Yes | Not documented; TOTP two-factor is ([S3](#sources)) | Not documented; 2FA is a Pro Enterprise feature ([F1](#sources)) | Not documented |
| Licence | MIT or Apache-2.0 | AGPL-3.0-only with additional terms; the bundled UI theme is proprietary; a commercial Enterprise edition exists ([S1](#sources), [S2](#sources)) | AGPL-3.0-or-later ([F3](#sources)); a paid Pro edition exists ([F1](#sources)) | GPL-2.0 with an OpenSSL linking exception ([V4](#sources)) |
| Platforms | Linux x86_64 and aarch64 (`.deb`, apt, container); macOS for small deployments | Linux, Windows, macOS, FreeBSD ([S2](#sources)); Docker images ([S1](#sources)) | Windows, macOS, Debian Linux ([F1](#sources)) | Unix-like systems, including Linux ([V1](#sources)) |
| Implementation language | Rust | Go ([S1](#sources)) | C++ ([F2](#sources)) | C ([V3](#sources)) |

## Where the others are ahead

- **Maturity.** siftp is at version 0.4.0. vsftpd and FileZilla Server
  have been in use for many years, and vsftpd is the default FTP server
  in several Linux distributions ([V3](#sources)).
- **Storage backends.** SFTPGo also supports Google Cloud Storage,
  Azure Blob, an encrypted local filesystem, and remote SFTP servers
  ([S2](#sources)). siftp has local disk and S3.
- **Platforms.** FileZilla Server and SFTPGo run on Windows. siftp builds on Windows but does not support it
  for deployment.
- **Sign-in.** SFTPGo supports TOTP two-factor and OpenID Connect
  ([S2](#sources)). siftp's console uses passkeys only.
- **Automation.** SFTPGo has an event manager and a Terraform
  provider ([S2](#sources)). siftp has neither.
- **Databases.** SFTPGo keeps its data in SQLite, MySQL, PostgreSQL,
  or CockroachDB ([S2](#sources)). siftp uses files.
- **Commercial support.** SFTPGo and FileZilla sell paid editions with
  support ([S1](#sources), [F1](#sources)).
- **GUI administration.** FileZilla Server has a desktop
  administration tool ([F2](#sources)). siftp is configured through a
  TOML file, the API, or the browser console.
- **Small and familiar.** vsftpd does one job, FTP, and a lot of
  administrators already know its configuration.

## Sources

- S1: [SFTPGo README](https://github.com/drakkan/sftpgo)
- S2: [SFTPGo documentation, "What is SFTPGo?"](https://docs.sftpgo.com/latest/)
- S3: [SFTPGo web interfaces](https://docs.sftpgo.com/latest/web-interfaces/)
- S4: [SFTPGo REST API](https://docs.sftpgo.com/latest/rest-api/)
- S5: [SFTPGo logs](https://docs.sftpgo.com/latest/logs/)
- F1: [FileZilla Server features](https://filezillapro.com/docs/server/features/filezilla-server-features/)
- F2: [FileZilla on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FileZilla)
- F3: [FileZilla licence page](https://filezilla-project.org/license.php)
- V1: [vsftpd home page](https://security.appspot.com/vsftpd.html)
- V2: [vsftpd.conf manual](https://security.appspot.com/vsftpd/vsftpd_conf.html)
- V3: [vsftpd on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vsftpd)
- V4: [Debian's copyright file for vsftpd 3.0.5](https://tracker.debian.org/media/packages/v/vsftpd/copyright-3.0.5-1)